We all know the value of getting links to our site. Links bring you traffic from related sites and boost your search engine rank, which brings you, umm, more traffic. So, basically, links = traffic.
However, gone are the days of simply asking for a link (in exchange for a link from your site) and actually getting one. These days, bland reciprocal link requests such as these almost never yield any benefit because they are simply ignored. Think about this old-school approach from the email recipient's point of view to understand why your link requests are ignored.
Webmasters of quality sites, the ones you want to get links from, are constantly dealing with link requests. 9 times out of 10 the webmaster simply sees "Link Exchange" and deletes the email. I know I do. I have more important things to do than to entertain requests that are most likely for sites that are not even relevant to mine.
And like most webmasters, I don't give the link requester the chance to even prove if it is relevant (meaning, I don't read the email). I've seen so many of these emails that they seem to hit the "Deleted Items" folder as fast as the Viagra spam emails.
So, this is the first hurdle, getting your email read. If your subject line resembles a link request at all, busy webmasters will see it as such and simply delete it. You have to put yourselves in their shoes. What would get you to read the email?
Well, how about starting off by telling them what YOU can do for THEM, instead of the other way around. This simple tactic works much better. Which one would you open:
A) Subject: "Exchange links with xyz.com"
B) Subject: "Love your site! As my way of saying thanks?"
In the body of the email you can introduce yourself and your site, and explain what you are trying to accomplish with your site.
Now, the following method varies slightly depending on what type of site you have that you are trying to get links for. Most sites fall into 2 categories: content sites and e-commerce sites. Is your site offering valuable content to your visitors (such as information on the best local golf courses), or is your site selling something (software or an ebook or something)? Your site will be one of these types.
If it's a content site then the process of acquiring links is much easier, because you simply have to convince the potential link partner that your site would be of value to them and their visitors. You could use an email such as:
"Hi there,
I just saw your site at _______ and think it's a great resource for our new _____ site. Our _____ site is unique because ______(here is where you would stress the value of your site)_________. Check it out at _________. Since our ____ site is like nothing else on the net, and we are quickly becoming the favorite resource for ____.
I am going to add your link to my site in a prominent location (with few outbounds on your link page) and was wondering if you would do the same.
The traffic we can send each other will be highly targeted and both of our visitors would appreciate and benefit from this link swap.
Again my site is at _________. Check it out!
Let me know if you would like me to add your link to the site.
Thanks!
____ (name)"
This type of email works well, and should net you a bunch of links if your content site truly is of value to the email recipient and his/her visitors.
Now, if your site falls under the second category, an e-commerce site, you need to put a little more work into your requests using the following approach. The body of the email would go on to explain that, as your way of saying thanks for a great site, you would like to offer them a complimentary copy of your ebook?or a copy of your software?or provide a service to them (copywriting, ebook design, graphic design)?whatever?in exchange for a link from their site. If they link to your site, you will provide them with something in return, other than simply a link back from your site.
And it doesn't have to be your main product either. You can put together a valuable little bonus for link partners, or you can acquire master resell rights to something that you think would be of interest to them and offer them this. The key is to be creative. If you think about it just a little bit, I'm sure you can come up with something to give away in exchange for some highly valuable links.
I have used this tactic successfully several times and it always works beautifully. People love this because there's actually something in it for them, unlike the dozen other boring reciprocal link requests they simply deleted. Trust me, it works.
But the key is that you have to approach the right sites ? RELEVANT SITES. I can't stress this enough. You cannot simply use this tactic as a blanket approach and send out as many emails as you can. If you do that, there goes the personalization and credibility you are hoping comes across in your email. You have to find only relevant sites that are truly valuable to you as a link partner.
And if your goal is simply to get top search engine rankings and not just the desire to have a ton of links pointing to your site, you don't have to send out hundreds of these requests - if they are properly targeted. This is especially true if you are in a relatively untapped niche market, because only a handful of the right links will get you top search engine rankings. After you get these links you will get listed at the top of MSN in a couple days, Yahoo in a couple weeks, and Google in a couple months. They all index and rank pages differently, but they share a common trait in that they all place an extremely high value on relevant backlinks. More so than any other SEO tactic out there, in fact.
So, how do you find relevant sites? Well, ideally these sites would not only be relevant but also would have a decent Page Rank as well as few outbound links on the page you would like to be linked from. As a rule of thumb, the higher the Page Rank and the fewer the outbound links the better. The PR Prowler program does exactly this. It allows you to enter in the keywords that relate to your site and specify a minimum Page Rank for your potential link partners, then it returns a list of highly valuable and, more importantly, relevant link partners for you and shows you the value of each one as a link partner. It can also email these sites from within the program (and customize each email), so you just have to craft your message and click "Send".
Bottom line: You have to be smart when you approach sites these days. With all the spam laws and email regulations in place, not to mention the resource drain on all those involved, you must only contact relevant sites to get links back to you. And by doing this in a creative fashion whereby the email recipient actually gets something of value in return for a simple link on their site you increase your chances of landing these valuable links tenfold. Not only does this boost your link popularity and search engine rank, but these relevant links are great traffic generators in and of themselves. It's a double-whammy, and an internet marketing tactic you should not take lightly.
Put some work into your link requests, and it will pay off in the end.
Shawn Pringle is the owner and founder of TopNet Solutions, and he has been promoting various web sites online for over 5 years using a variety of clever tactics. His PR Prowler http://www.PRProwler.com software is used by hundreds of savvy webmasters to find highly relevant link partners. He can be reached at springle@topnetsolutions.net.
If your new to the internet marketing world, you might... Read More
The ProblemNo matter how good your product or service is,... Read More
There are many different approaches and techniques required when optimising... Read More
Here's the "How-To-Do-It Guide" for driving search engine traffic right... Read More
Though each web site is different, it is possible to... Read More
Alright, so you have a website but are lacking visitors?... Read More
Having a website is great but, if the site doesn't... Read More
The world wide web or www is a wonderful, inspiring,... Read More
It appears that most webmasters have come from the world... Read More
Link Exchanges are a very time consuming project. The time... Read More
When I started GetQuotes-IT.com in 2003, I knew... Read More
For many years now, getting traffic from search engines when... Read More
Nowadays there are just too many people trying to give... Read More
Exchanging links can be a great way to build relations... Read More
This interesting idea is likely to drive your competitors nuts.It... Read More
Some education is essential to enlighten you about this form... Read More
Do you know what kind of sites are suitable link... Read More
Have you received invitations to join an online networking website?... Read More
Bill Huang sits down at his computer. As he connects... Read More
Traffic is one thing, but targeted traffic is everything.You have... Read More
All of us want to increase traffic to our web... Read More
Do you ever wonder what the point is in spending... Read More
Gary Halbert once said that the ONLY advantage he wanted... Read More
If the headline is what gets them there, then it's... Read More
(Continued from Using Traffic Exchange Programs Part 1)Hello again!In this... Read More
Sub-domains are websites that are located within a directory of... Read More
Do you know that you can promote your home business... Read More
Do you want to generate more orders at your website?Here... Read More
I am not a web designer or search engine optimizer,... Read More
Every website needs a link exchange program. Every week, set... Read More
The desire of every webmaster and in fact anybody with... Read More
Writing LinksIn the first part of this article we learned... Read More
The debate rages on forums all over the internet-should one... Read More
All we webmasters know the importance and procedure to exchange... Read More
How would you like to make $4 for EVERY visitor... Read More
So we gather in all the relevant information we can... Read More
"How Can I Double My Sales?" - that must be... Read More
With all the buzz going on about the importance of... Read More
The importance of link popularity is widely known and many... Read More
If you are looking at ways to increase traffic to... Read More
When you are building links to increase your link popularity,... Read More
When people look to submit their sites to the major... Read More
There are many easy ways to get your name out... Read More
Large companies tend to spend huge amount of money on... Read More
Do you ever wonder what the point is in spending... Read More
1. Vary the keywords in your link 'anchor' textUnless you... Read More
Traffic. We all know that without it our sites will... Read More
Unless you're building a baseball diamond in the middle of... Read More
Sending out link requests is a time-consuming business. So wouldn't... Read More
One problem with websites is that they often go neglected... Read More
There are lots of ways to get traffic to your... Read More
Completely by accident and through no effort of my own,... Read More
Recently I came across a web site with the heading... Read More
Since everyone is so obsessed with ways to increase our... Read More
How to Build Web Traffic DailyI - Introduction II -... Read More
If you want to get something from others, the fastest... Read More
Let's face it; the Internet is cluttered with all sorts... Read More
Internet is an ever evolving business platform. Doing business on... Read More
Every website needs a link exchange program. Every week, set... Read More
Would you like to get in on one the Internet's... Read More
Ever since the time websites became new to the World... Read More
Asking another webmaster for a reciprocal link is standard practice... Read More
So what is this all important secret? It can generate... Read More
A websites profitability depends solely on directing visitors to that... Read More
There are multiple ways to drive traffic to your website.... Read More
Some of the best advertising available online would be getting... Read More
Traffic Building |